Gabourey Sidibe & Body Image

I’m a bit of a Pinterest addict. During downtime at work I tend to go through the Food & Drink category looking for new nomworthy recipes and the Quotes section is good for motivation and I love that there is a new Tattoo page. Not that I’m in the market for a fourth. (At least not yet.)

It’s a fine line some of us tread. The idea of losing a significant amount of weight while still advocating fat acceptance. It can be done, though. They aren’t mutually exclusive ideals, although I understand how some outsiders may see it as hypocritical.

These days, after 108 pounds lost, I’m witnessing the other side of the coin. Co-workers showing surprise at the fact that I still want to lose another 40 or so pounds. Saying things like “You aren’t going to get all skinny, are you?”

A lot of FA supporters were in love with the Dove “Real Women Have Curves” campaign that came out a few years ago. Me? I hate them. I hate the idea that it suggests that only women with curves can be considered “real” women. Or only heavy women have curves, which, let me tell ya, is not the case. I have plenty of skinny, curvy friends.

On Facebook and Pinterest you see pictures comparing Dove women with Victoria Secret Angels, the idea being that the Dove women with their curves are more beautiful. Or should be considered more beautiful just because they have a little more oomph on them.

One side of the spectrum is not more beautiful or sexy or curvy or more “real” than the other. Which is why I don’t advocate fat acceptance, but body acceptance. It’s an entirely personal choice, just as the idea of sexiness and beauty is completely subjective. It’s all about you and me finding the weight and size that leaves us feeling happy and healthy and completely comfortable in our own skin.

Which brings me back to Gabourey. No, she doesn’t look like a Victoria Secret model but they are all just as beautiful and sexy in their own ways. And when asked where she gets all of her confidence, Gabourey said:

It came from me. One day I decided that I was beautiful, and so I carried out my life as if I was a beautiful girl … It doesn’t have anything to do with how the world perceives you. What matters is what you see. Your body is your temple, it’s your home, and you must decorate it.”

So. Awesome. I love the idea of body acceptance. A really good friend of mine is obsessed with the number on the tag and I really wish that I could tell her the number doesn't matter, she's beautiful whether she's a 2, a 12, or 22…she just needs to love herself. I'll have to email her this post. 😉

I agree with body acceptance wholeheartedly. There is so much more to a person than that number on the scale or the size that they wear. It is this commitment to this that I continue to work on being the healthiest me I can be. I honestly don't care if I am ever an ideal weight or size…but I do care if I am strong, healthy and feel good!